Handbook of Religion and Church History in Slovakia in the 20th Century
Final Report Abstract
The Handbook of the Religious and Church History of Slovakia in the 20th Century is the first comprehensive overview of the religious development of the country to combine studies on the churches and religious communities. This hitherto missing synopsis is also the basis for comparative and cross-denominational analyses on the effects of the Czechoslovak state idea on church life in Slovakia, on Slovak nationalism under the influence of the Catholic-Protestant contrast, on the specific development in eastern Slovakia and on the politicization of religion after the upheaval of 1989. In addition to the articles on the history of the churches, the handbook also contains overarching and supplementary studies on the topics mentioned. Two key questions provided two central axes for the development of the handbook: On the one hand, analyses of how the changing polyethnic environment over the course of the 20th century affected church structures and religious interpretations were incorporated into the overall presentation. A separate thematic block considers the church organization, religious life, but also the religious-ethnic mobilization for the ethnic groups of Slovakia. On the other hand, the aim was to thoroughly record the role of religion and churches during the period of the Slovak state (1939-1945) and communist rule (1948-1989). For this purpose, not only studies were integrated in which the impairments of religious life and the persecution of churches and religious communities are examined, but also analyses that ask about the mutual influences and mixtures of regime and political ideology as well as religious organization and national-church tradition. The handbook completed as part of the project not only offers a well-founded reference work based on current research. It can also be used as a starting point for further research, for example into the influence of the Holy See on communist-ruled East Central Europe or the effects of church history on the political and social development of Slovakia after 1989. An abridged Slovak version of the publication, which will contain the essential and particularly research-relevant contributions, is currently being prepared so that possible new research impulses can also have an international impact.
Publications
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Zwischen konfessionellen und nationalen Interessen. Überlegungen zum Engagement des Gustav-Adolf-Vereins in der Slowakei in der Zwischenkriegszeit. In: Ilić, Angela (Hg.): Bekenntnis und Diaspora. Beziehungen und Netzwerke zwischen Deutschland, Mittel- und Südosteuropa im Protestantismus vom 16. bis 20. Jahrhundert. Regensburg 2021, 139-152
Bischof, Anna
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Handbuch der Religions- und Kirchengeschichte der Slowakei im 20. Jahrhundert. Göttingen 2024. ISBN 978-3-525-30248-4
Zückert, Martin
